How to Clean an Ashtray (Every Material)

Most advice on how to clean an ashtray assumes you own a steel dish and a scourer. If yours is glazed ceramic, glass, marble or resin, the right method depends on the material, and the wrong one can do more damage in a minute than a year of ash. Here is the routine we use on our own pieces, then the specifics for each material.

The routine: how to clean an ashtray every day

Ash is easy. Tar and smell are the problem, and both get harder to shift the longer they sit. So the single best habit is boring: empty it daily, before it turns into a project.

Empty it while it is cool. Tip the ash and butts into a bin, not a bin bag with anything flammable near the top. Make sure nothing is still smouldering.
Dry wipe. A paper towel or an old soft cloth takes off loose ash before water turns it into paste.
Rinse in warm water with a drop of dish soap. Not hot, not cold. Warm.
Wipe with a soft sponge, paying attention to the rests and the corners where residue collects.
Dry it completely before it goes back on the table. Water left sitting in a well mixes with fresh ash and starts the cycle again.

That is two minutes. Do it most days and you will rarely need anything stronger.

Material by material

Glazed ceramic

Glaze is a layer of glass fused onto the clay, which is why a glazed ceramic ashtray is the easiest kind to live with. The surface is non-porous, so smell and tar sit on top rather than soaking in. Our marbled squares like Storm and Moss, the bulldogs and the clogs all fall here.

For built-up tar, soak the piece for twenty minutes or so in warm soapy water, then wipe. If marks remain, make a paste of baking soda and a little water, rub it on gently with a soft cloth, and rinse. Baking soda is mild enough not to dull a glaze. A soft toothbrush gets into textured areas, such as the stepped rests on the squares or the open jaws of Chomp.

Unglazed areas are different. Some pieces, like Crater, have a deliberately rough, unglazed flank. That surface is more absorbent, so keep ash in the crater where it belongs and give the rough side a quick brush rather than a scrub.

Hand-painted ceramic

Our hand-painted pieces (Puff, Swirl, Sex, Egg and Pool) need the same routine with a lighter hand. The painted detail is the point of the object, so treat it like you would a painted plate you actually care about: soft cloth, warm water, mild soap, no scourers, no abrasive powders, no dishwasher. Baking soda paste is fine on the plain glazed areas; go easy over the lettering and painted lines.

Pressed glass

A glass ashtray shows every smear, which is either a flaw or a feature depending on how often you clean. Glass is non-porous and cleans beautifully with warm soapy water. For a streak-free finish, a final rinse in water with a splash of white vinegar, then a dry with a lint-free cloth, does the job.

The one rule with glass is temperature. Glass dislikes sudden changes, so never pour boiling water into a cold piece or run a warm one under cold water. Let it reach room temperature first. Frosted glass, like Frost, has a textured surface that can hold residue in its grain, so a soft brush helps there.

Marble

A marble ashtray is the exception to almost every tip above. Marble is natural stone, it is porous, and it reacts with acid. Vinegar, lemon juice and most bathroom cleaners will etch the surface, leaving dull patches that no amount of polishing at home will fully undo.

For Onyx and Veil: empty often, wipe with a damp cloth and a little pH-neutral soap, rinse, and dry straight away. Do not soak marble. If a tar stain sets in, a thick paste of baking soda and water left on the mark for a few hours, then gently wiped off, can lift it. Lighter marble shows stains sooner, so Veil rewards a more regular wipe.

Resin

Resin is durable but does not love heat or harsh chemicals. For Gather and Grasp, stub out in the cupped palms rather than resting a lit cigarette on the fingers, and clean with warm soapy water and a soft cloth. Skip solvents like acetone or nail polish remover, and skip the abrasive side of the sponge. Both can cloud or scratch the finish.

Getting rid of the smell

Ashtray smell comes from tar and from damp ash, not from the ashtray itself. On glazed ceramic and glass, a proper wash removes it completely. If the room still smells:

Empty more often. Old butts are the source. Nothing else works if they stay.
Keep it dry. Wet ash smells worse and sticks harder.
Use a thin layer of baking soda or clean sand in the base of the well between cleans. Both absorb odour and make emptying easier.
Use a lid if you have one. Pinch, our crab, closes. Out of sight is not the same as clean, but it helps a room between emptyings.

Vinegar and baking soda: when, and when not

They are the two most recommended cleaners for a reason. White vinegar cuts tar and film on glass and glazed ceramic. Baking soda absorbs smell and works as a very gentle scrub. Used together they fizz, which is satisfying but mostly neutralises both, so use them one after the other rather than mixed.

Safe for vinegar: glazed ceramic, glass. Keep vinegar away from: marble, always. Go gently on: hand-painted detail and resin, where plain soap and water is the better choice.

A note on car ashtrays

A car ashtray is usually plastic or metal in a cramped slot, so the same principles apply in a smaller space. Empty it every time you fill up, pull it out if it is removable, wash with warm soapy water and dry fully before refitting. A spoon of baking soda in the base between cleans keeps the cabin from smelling like last week. And it is a good argument for doing most of your smoking somewhere with a better ashtray.

What not to do

No metal scourers or scouring powder on glaze, paint or glass.
No vinegar, lemon or acidic cleaners on marble.
No boiling water on cold glass or ceramic.
No dishwasher for hand-painted pieces. Hand washing takes the same two minutes.
No sliding a heavy piece across a stone counter. Lift it.

Looked after this way, a good ashtray stays as it arrived for years. If you are choosing a new one with cleaning in mind, our ceramic vs glass vs marble guide compares the materials honestly, and the full collection is on the products page. Questions about a specific piece? Write to us.